“Um, we’re not going anywhere with you and that’s not an answer,” I countered, grabbing her arm to stall her. “And I’m not taking you back to our plane. So if you’re expecting a ride home in exchange for helping us, we need to separate right now. I’m not making any deals with a daughter of Lilith, no matter how wrong or inaccurate the myths are.”

She knocked away my hand. “Then you’re a bigger fool than I’d thought possible. The only reason the Prince of Hell is not bashing down those doors right now is that the Underworld mandates he go to his Qeby and make sure she is okay. And just to make sure he does so, his wife has summoned him. He cannot resist her. They are bound by a firm supernatural link. The Princess alone has given us an out. The only real out I’ve had in centuries, and you are mistaken if you think I’m not leaving this plane—with or without your help.” She leaned into my personal space, my wolf snapping her jaws. “And for your information, I can leave here on my own. But if we go together, you will have some control once we arrive on your plane. Which will it be?”

My wolf urged me to fight her, to eliminate her altogether. She shoved adrenaline through me like a hypodermic full of juice. It raced through my body and my fingernails ached, my claws an inch away from springing. It was everything I could do to rein my wolf in. I know this is bad, but let me handle it. If the Prince couldn’t kill her, we may not be able to either. And I’m not killing anyone in cold blood until we know the full story.

I cleared my voice, trying to stay calm. “We’ve already covered this, Lili—if you could’ve left, you would’ve already. You’re stuck here, and according to the myth I’m familiar with, it’s for a damn good reason. I’m not going to be the one to unleash you in our world, so if you can manage to get to our plane on your own, and cause trouble, I’ll figure out a way to deal with you then. But I’m not willfully bringing you with us. So you need to stop asking.”

She shook her head. “That’s where you’re wrong. I’ve stayed here by choice, because I didn’t want to leave. I had a good life up until—”

“The Princess of Hell found out you were banging her husband?” I finished as Rourke growled behind me, moving in closer. He sensed my distress, but had no idea what had happened between me and Lili thus far. I appreciated his patience, especially when I knew all he wanted to do was get rid of the threat and hurry us home.

“I’ve been ‘banging’ her husband for eons. That’s not the issue.” She shooed my comment away. “We’re not attached to our… mates… here”—she glanced behind me at my imposing significant other—“like you seem to be. The demoness seeks power, and she feels it is her time to rule. But she cannot do it if you or I stay behind. We are a distraction to the demons and our power is greater than hers. In order for her to ascend to power, and take the Throne of Astaroth from the Prince, we must leave this plane.”

That was new, game-changing information. “If the demoness is truly seeking power,” I countered, “then we should all stay here and help her win the throne. Even though I want nothing more than to escape this plane, leaving before it’s all finished will guarantee the Prince will go on another manhunt to find me if the Princess doesn’t win. And if you think I’m going through another mock trial, you’re wrong. When I leave here, it will be for good. The Underworld is never going to interfere with my life again. The demoness either takes the crown and sets us free, or we kill the Prince ourselves. If we achieve either, she will be in our debt and set us free. But whatever the outcome, I’m still not taking you with us. She’s going to have to find another place for you to go.”

Lili crossed her arms. “You have no choice in the matter.”

“Excuse me?” My wolf snapped her jaws.

“The reason I was jailed wasn’t that I was an insufficient lover. It was that I discovered something just before you arrived. Something that has shaken the internal fabric of the Underworld to its very core. Because of this, things are moving on their own and we are just along for the ride. It was no mistake you found me when you did and it’s no mistake we’re standing together right now. The sooner you accept that, the sooner we can all leave this place forever.”

I glanced around the group to see how everyone else was taking this information. Ray appeared stoic, Tyler concerned, and Rourke’s mouth was set in a determined line. “And what exactly was the big news you uncovered?” I asked, crossing my arms as I turned back to Lili. “If I truly have no choice, you’re going to have to do some heavy convincing. And I’d suggest you start with the truth.”

Lili was speaking of Fate, there was no question. And we all knew that if we were in the middle of Fate’s true choice—for me to bring Lili home—it would be very hard to veer from that course.

“There was more to the Scriptures than any demon originally thought,” she started. “When I happen to uncover more of the Old Writings in their entirety, I was as shocked as anyone. Once I gathered the impact, I took them to…” She paused as she glanced down at her hands.

It wasn’t hard to guess she had broken her allegiance to her lover, so I took the most logical path. “You took them to the Princess, instead of the Prince,” I finished. “And when the Prince of Hell discovered your betrayal, you fell from his grace. He unceremoniously kicked you out of his bed and had you put into prison. I see where this went wrong, but that still doesn’t explain the facts to me. What did the sacred Scriptures say exactly?”

She smirked at me. “Are you always this disagreeable?”

“I’m disagreeable to those who try and continually manipulate me, which you’ve done from the very start. You could’ve told me the truth—if this even is the truth—when we first met, but you chose not to. You have done very little to gain my trust, why should I believe anything you tell me now?”

“There was no time to explain the entirety of it,” she huffed. “We’ve been on the run since you first walked into my cell. Not only that, the demoness had forbidden me to say anything up until twenty minutes ago, when she freed me from the horrors of a mending room.”

“And why did the demoness have such a sudden change of heart?” I asked, remembering our little wink session a few short minutes ago. “And if you’re so much more powerful than she is, why didn’t you just escape on your own?”